I'll be in Montreal and Longueuil, Quebec, Canada for two weeks. What budget-friendly things should I do there?
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posted by GlassHeart
on May 12, 2013 -
17 answers
So SO and I are watching the first season of Spiral (Engrenages) and there's something about the procedural process that confuses me - suspects are brought in, and then soon after meet with a 'Judge' who decides a sentence - but unlike UK or US shows, this is done in a private office, not a courtroom. Can someone explain this to us? (No spoilers, if you know about French justice but not the programme!)
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posted by mippy
on May 10, 2013 -
10 answers
I recently discovered an awesome local bookstore in France, hence I'd like to pick up a French-language SF/F novel that isn't a translation and would be difficult to find in the US. Suggestions? (Subgenre preferences below the jump)
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posted by serelliya
on May 7, 2013 -
8 answers
I rented this film on VHS in 1999. It is about a younger french girl, living with her mother in a trailer park. Mother is a drunk, they are poor, she tries to get a job at a food stand at one point (??)
There is love interest and conflict and some kind of crisis. I loved this movie and have thought about it often since I saw it but I am afraid that my memories may have started overwriting my recollections.
She is a little bit of a feral child, medium length brown hair, very striking. Please help!
posted by n9
on Apr 14, 2013 -
6 answers
I'm learning French, and am looking to increase my exposure to spoken French. Among other things, I've been listening to the Coffee Break French series of podcasts, which has been very helpful, but I'd like to add in some podcasts that aren't specifically about learning French -- podcasts that are by native French speakers and made for a French-speaking audience, but which ideally are fairly accessible or at least roughly comprehensible with some effort to someone who has only a patchy knowledge of the language. French news podcasts might be valuable to me, for instance. Bonus features: podcasts that are also broadcast in English, podcasts that are about scientific topics, and podcasts that are about or are produced in francophone Africa. Recommendations?
posted by Scientist
on Mar 14, 2013 -
17 answers
I want to send a postcard from France to
this restaurant in Japan where my friend is a cook. There appears to be an address on the front page of the website, but I'll be damned if I can make out what it says, much less recreate it on a postcard in a way that the French post can parse. I'm sure I could ask him myself, but I would prefer to surprise him. Can anyone help me with this?
posted by Evstar
on Mar 11, 2013 -
9 answers
I would like to know what the beginning of this song says translated to English from French (I'm assuming it's French; at least that's what it sounds like to me). Also, if there's any relevant information you can give me about the French that would be great (e.g., "It's a quotation from..." or "Everyone in France knows that this means...").
Nicolaas Jaar - Etre (Single Link Vimeo).
posted by uncannyslacks
on Mar 10, 2013 -
8 answers
My seventh grade French textbook had particularly charming illustrations. I don't remember the title of the book or what the cover looked like, but I'd know the illustrations if I saw them. They were mostly, if not entirely, in black-and-white and featured young people doing ordinary things like going to the beach. This textbook was used in about 1989 in a public school in southern New Hampshire.
Is there any way of finding out more about it or perhaps buying a copy online? I suppose I could ask the school but I'd rather not.
posted by gentian
on Mar 2, 2013 -
5 answers
What are your tips and techniques for learning advanced vocabulary and grammar in a foreign language?
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posted by kristi
on Feb 26, 2013 -
15 answers
Please recommend books, websites, and other resources to learn more advanced French food and restaurant vocabulary, so that I can read menus and cookbooks, navigate restaurants, and describe food ("salty," "sweet," etc.).
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posted by The Girl Who Ate Boston
on Feb 16, 2013 -
17 answers
Can you help transcribe (I guess) a few lines of French from Lafayette Blues, by the White Stripes?
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posted by Nabubrush
on Feb 7, 2013 -
6 answers
Help me track down the origin of this Leonardo Da Vinci maxim, of which I can only find a French translation.
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posted by padraigin
on Feb 7, 2013 -
8 answers
My piano teacher gave me the music for this. The video is of one of my fave pianists (Cortot) giving a masterclass on the piece and I'd really like to know what he's saying. (Hope this is the appropriate place to ask.)
posted by mermily
on Jan 27, 2013 -
11 answers
I'm looking for the biggest, most complete French-English dictionary available in one volume. I'm aware of Le Petit Robert, but I need French-English, not French-French. The biggest I've found so far is the Collins-Robert, but that can't be the biggest.
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posted by gnossie
on Jan 26, 2013 -
12 answers
Teach me how to make
Cancoillotte cheese from things I can buy in an American supermarket or (unlikely) where to buy it for shipment to the USA (Nebraska).
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posted by jepler
on Jan 22, 2013 -
12 answers
Now my guess is that it's so they can sell the same thing in both the U.S and Canada but why does this seem to be unique to shampoo and not other products commonly found in the supermarket like detergent?
posted by zeoslap
on Jan 22, 2013 -
15 answers
I spent 4 years learning French in high school, and have retained just enough since then to vaguely eavesdrop on a fellow commuter's French novel the other day. I would like to brush up on my reading comprehension, and could use some suggestions for some simply written fiction to pick up.
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posted by thirdletter
on Jan 16, 2013 -
25 answers
There's a character in the 1955 movie "French Cancan" who wears a very fancy uniform. He wears a light blue double-breasted jacket with white braid and bright red pants with stripes on the sides. I think it is some kind of old fashioned military dress uniform. You can see the outfit
0.26 seconds into the trailer (warning:there are 26 seconds of cancan dancing first). My question is:
(1) What sort of uniform was this? Or is it just a costume they made up for the movie?
(2) Where/how could a modern person most affordably get a similar outfit of sufficiently good quality to wear around town at fancy occasions that are not Halloween?
posted by steinwald
on Jan 13, 2013 -
9 answers
I am in Seattle. I'd like to learn French, to the point where I could (in 6 months, say) carry on a rough conversation with someone in Québec or France. I have knowledge of a few words but would essentially be starting from scratch. With which group/center/school should I take classes, but most importantly:
why? (In other words, what would make that class better than those offered through alternatives?)
posted by Blazecock Pileon
on Dec 25, 2012 -
9 answers
In 2013 I will have 2-3 hours a week to spend learning one or more of the following: French, guitar, advanced math (stats, calc). Which will benefit most from this limited amount of study effort?
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posted by riddler
on Dec 15, 2012 -
6 answers
Le Pop Super-Bon! Can anyone suggest French bubble-gum pop that's especially
au courant? Like
Yelle (particularly her first album), only more recent? Stuff good for dancing or for cleaning the house. I've seen
these threads, but they're a bit stale.
Merci à tous!
posted by Capt. Renault
on Dec 14, 2012 -
6 answers
My boss (I work in Tokyo for an independent think tank) has asked me to track down a particular quote for him by Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French Forces and first president of the French Fifth Republic. Specifically, he is looking for a quote in which de Gaulle says something about the alliance not sharing a common destiny... I've been looking like crazy but have yet to find anything along these lines? Any ideas??
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posted by amirachel
on Dec 11, 2012 -
4 answers
Dear French speaking Mefites: I am an idiot. I can't get the prepositions down! Knowing when to say "au" or "du" is KILLING me. I've made cheat sheets and have memorized most of the set phrases I can, but when I'm writing on my own I inevitably foul it up or blank. Can you help?
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posted by two lights above the sea
on Dec 4, 2012 -
11 answers
I am looking for the lyrics for Jean Lou as sung by Gillian Hills and written by Charles Aznavour. I've looked all over google but am at a loss - please help!
posted by lasamana
on Nov 29, 2012 -
1 answer
Hello French brothers and sisters! Can an American Grad. student find plant biotech. Phd work in France these days? It is a dream to move there with my young wife, what are the biggest and best schools? Thanks everyone!
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posted by 1inabillionmistake
on Nov 23, 2012 -
1 answer
Hi everyone,
I am a 24 y/o English native about to start a PhD in London. During the next 3 years, I would very much like to begin learning French alongside my doctoral studies, and I am interested in finding out the most effective and efficient way of going about this.
Realistically I will probably be able and willing to dedicate between one and two hours a day to studying French. I am interested in learning to both speak and write the language in equal measure.
Any advice is much appreciated.
posted by FuckingAwesome
on Nov 23, 2012 -
13 answers
Are you a francophone genderqueer person? What pronouns do you use? What language changes have you made?
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posted by blnkfrnk
on Oct 7, 2012 -
2 answers
French tv & movie recs for someone who wants to be entertained but also get used to the language?
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posted by Mizu
on Sep 26, 2012 -
27 answers
I'm looking for online foreign language (French) courses/classes with an instructor component.
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posted by benbenson
on Sep 20, 2012 -
7 answers
I have an antique French olive oil label. The printer's name and location appear in small print at the bottom: "Panet & Imbert" - Marseille". I would like to know when this printer was in operation. I have not found anything useful about this on the Internet.
posted by kirsti
on Aug 18, 2012 -
5 answers
Where are the audiobooks in French? There are thousands of books on audible in Spanish, but none in French.
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posted by winna
on Aug 5, 2012 -
6 answers
Why do so many bathroom/toiletry product labels have (usually poor) French translations (in US markets)? No other household products have these translations - just bathroom stuff.
posted by dmd
on Aug 4, 2012 -
11 answers
Does anyone have experience jobhunting as an Anglophone in Montreal? Where should I be looking for English jobs, should I just forget finding one and learn French ASAP, and is this going to be as big a problem as I fear? Et aussi une grand plaque de fèves.
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posted by snorkmaiden
on Aug 3, 2012 -
8 answers
Can someone guide me to a small, handleless, tapered rolling pin that is truly meant to be used and is from a trust worthy place?
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posted by Foam Pants
on Jul 28, 2012 -
16 answers
Where can I buy three black berets and gauloises cigarettes tomorrow or Saturday in Washington, D.C. (or on-line so they get here SUPER fast)?
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posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl
on Jul 12, 2012 -
11 answers
French language nerd wanted! Help a nerd spell her French-language text tattoo correctly, please.
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posted by Jennifer S.
on Jul 5, 2012 -
10 answers
So I have a chance to interpret for a bunch of French chefs who are coming to my city. The catch: I have zero knowledge of the hotel industry.
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posted by Tamanna
on Jul 5, 2012 -
3 answers
I was taught French through to Grade 10; however, have been far removed from it since then. I am too shy to try to converse in French with others; but would like to build the confidence to be able to. What are some good strategies for relearning a language and becoming more confident conversing in it at the same time?
posted by jamincan
on Jun 18, 2012 -
5 answers
I'm relearning French and I would like a really good workbook/program that focuses on grammar. I have vocabulary and pronounciation fine (Mindsnacks & Anki, Pimsleur and Michael Thomas) and I'm practicing reading and writing with several texts and Lang8.com. I keep tripping up on half-remembered grammatical rules, and I really want something I can work through at my own pace. I would much prefer an app with built-in drills, but I'll buy a workbook/textbook as well. I want something like Chapter 7: Passive verbs, Chapter 8: Interrogatives with an explanation of the rules, examples and then drills. Not a complete French course, but just grammar.
posted by viggorlijah
on Jun 1, 2012 -
12 answers
If you have the chance to study full-time in a non-native situation, how long does it take to become fluent in a language?
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posted by Megami
on May 26, 2012 -
17 answers
Need help finding the title to this movie. Here is what I do know.. It is French, it is in color possibly from the 60s-80s with a better guess it being made in the 70s and I believe it was a comedy. This man girlfriend is unhappy cause they are unable to have a child. They takes kids at a summer camp then the women falls in love with a boy at the camp. A intimate relations ensue between the women and the boy. The family finds out and send boy away to boarding where he is willing abducted to couple. Please Help with identify this title.
posted by Rolandkorn
on May 25, 2012 -
2 answers
I'm trying to find a French food website that I used to use a lot but seem to have lost. What details I remember are inside...
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posted by ninazer0
on May 24, 2012 -
3 answers
